Adesanya faces an old foe for toughest test yet

Israel Adesanya’s spotless record as middleweight champion will be put to the test by an old foe, Alex Pereira, in the main event of UFC 281 at the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City on the morning of Sunday 13 November 2022.

Adesanya (23-1) is unbeaten as a middleweight in professional MMA and has successfully defended his title five times, most recently claiming a unanimous decision triumph over Jared Cannonier at UFC 276 in July.

However, one man who has tasted victory over ‘The Last Stylebender’ is Pereira – albeit not in MMA.

The Brazilian twice got the better of Adesanya in kickboxing matches in 2016 and 2017 – once via decision and once via knockout.

Pereira (6-1) recently joined the UFC and has earned his title shot with three straight wins over Andreas Michailidis, Bruno Silva, and Sean Strickland.

Now he is gunning to dethrone Adesanya, but the Nigerian-born star has warned against a hat-trick of victories.